Beijing, China: China used a name workaround to the Rubio China ban, allowing US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to attend Beijing talks despite 2020 sanctions.
Rubio joined President Donald Trump of the United States for talks with President Xi Jinping of China. Chinese documents used a different transliteration of Rubio’s name, according to reports.
Al Jazeera’s Alan Fisher called the move a “sleight of hand” from Beijing. AFP reported that diplomats saw the spelling change as a way around the entry ban.
China sanctioned Rubio in 2020 over his criticism of Beijing’s actions in Hong Kong and Xinjiang. Rubio also backed the Uyghur Forced Labour Prevention Act.
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Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said in March that the sanctions targeted Rubio’s “words and deeds” as a senator.
